DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica baseball team will have their final regular season home games on Wednesday when it welcomes Northland College to Wade Stadium for an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) doubleheader. CSS has also added a non-conference game at Bethel University on Thursday.
Where:
Wednesday
Wade Stadium – Duluth, Minn.
Thursday
Hargis Park – Arden Hills, Minn.
When:
Wednesday vs. Northland – 1:30 p.m. (DH)
Thursday at Bethel – 4:30 p.m.
Live Video/Stats vs. Northland: http://csssaints.com/ssn
Live Video/Stats at Bethel: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/bethel/
Social Media:
Twitter:
www.twitter.com/cssbaseball
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/cssbaseball
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/cssbaseball/
St. Scholastica Saints
Stats
Record: 23-7, 12-0 UMAC
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: Standings | Stats
Last Action: The Saints swept the University of Northwestern (Minn.) scoring a combined 33 runs in the doubleheader and accumulating 30 hits with six doubles and three home runs …
Steven Neutzling (St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral ) hit two 3-run home runs, while
Riley Bernsdorf (Meadowlands, Minn. /Floodwood HS) accumulated five hits …
Martin Alcoverde (Tucson, Ariz. /Sahuarita HS (Mesabi Range CC)) struck out nine batters in only five innings of work to win game one, while
Grant Rindal (Superior, Wis./Superior HS ) joined Alcoverde in the five-win club, taking game two.
Schedule Adjustments: The Saints had another game wiped out on Monday due to weather as their contest at Carleton College was canceled … With four lost games due to weather, CSS was able to add the Bethel game Thursday.
Where They Stand: With a split on Wednesday, the Saints can clinch at least a share of their 21
st consecutive UMAC regular season title … A sweep would give them the championship outright … The University of Minnesota Morris sits three games back with doubleheaders against Northwestern and Northland remaining … Bethany Lutheran College, Northland, the University of Wisconsin-Superior and Northwestern are all batting for the postseason.
Minks' Total Bases: Senior third baseman
Brian Minks (St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral HS ) became only the second player in program history record at least 50 doubles, 10 triples and 10 home runs in a career, joining CSS Hall of Famer Ben Sickler … With his next hit he will become the ninth player in program history to reach 300 total bases for his career.
Fear the Long Ball: The Saints have hit 23 home runs this season, which leads the UMAC … The 23 homers match last year's output … CSS has not hit at least 25 home runs in a season since 2008 … Neutzling has hit eight home runs this season, which are the most by a CSS player in a season since 2008.
That Bullpen Though: The St. Scholastica bullpen allowed only three hits and did not allow a run in five innings against Northwestern on Saturday … The CSS bullpen's earned run average is now 2.15 and opponents' batting average is .210. … The Saints are 20-0 this season when leading or tied after the sixth inning.
Streaks/Trends: Joey Zwak (Duluth, Minn. /Duluth East HS ) enters Wednesday's games on a 14-game hitting streak … Neutzling and R. Bernsdorf have each reached base safely in 21 consecutive games.
Tough to Beat at Wade: Since 2006, the Saints are 134-8 at Wade Stadium, including 69-2 since 2011 … On the resurfaced turf, the Saints are 41-2 … CSS will look to improve to 14-0 this season … The program record for most home wins in a season is 16 set in 2007.
Upcoming Opponents
Northland LumberJacks
Record: 12-18, 7-5 UMAC
The LumberJacks are coming off a doubleheader sweep of Crown College on Saturday … Northland is battling for one of the final three postseason spots up for grabs … The 'Jacks have swept Northwestern this season, but have also been swept by Martin Luther College … Northland is led offensively by Xavier Baez-Ortiz, who is fifth in the conference with a .391 batting average and leads the conference with a .519 on-base percentage … Jakob Freele leads the UMAC with 17 stolen bases and has recorded 11 doubles … Northland as a team leads the conference with 65 stolen bases … Sam Lehman has hit four home runs … Jake Morris leads the pitching staff with a 3-3 record, including two complete games and also has five saves … Morris and Carson Ferry each have a team-high 32 strikeouts.
Bethel Royals
Record: 28-6, 13-3 MIAC
The Royals swept Gustavus Adolphus College on Saturday and have a key Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) doubleheader against the University of St. Thomas on Tuesday before facing the Saints Thursday … Bethel ranks second in NCAA Division III with a fielding percentage of .979 … The Royals also rank in the top 10 in the country in team ERA (3.01), strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.25) and shutouts (6) … Bret Neuville leads the MIAC with 34 RBIs, while Bryce Marquardt leads the conference with 16 stolen bases … Michael Wesner and Austin Ledin have each hit four home runs … On the mound, Michael Bohlke has team-high six wins, while Michael Willman has five wins and a 2.96 ERA … Jake Marsh has recorded five saves.
Series Records:
-CSS leads Northland 67-0-1
(Last Meeting: 18-4 CSS – 5/4/2016)
-CSS leads Bethel 6-1-1
(Last Meeting: 3-2 CSS – 4/17/2016)
Series Histories: The Saints have scored at least 11 runs against Northland in five of the last six meetings … The lone non-CSS win in the series was at Northland during the 2005 season as the contest ended in a 10-10 tie /// St. Scholastica has won four straight against Bethel, including winning two games last season … The Royals won the lone meeting to take place at Bethel's home field, which was in 1993
Looking Ahead: The Saints wrap up the regular season with a conference doubleheader at Crown College on Saturday and then a non-conference doubleheader at the University of St. Thomas on Sunday.
